City of Wolverhampton College, UK, will stop recruiting non-EU students to certain courses after immigration officials uncovered high levels of truancy at the FE college. From September students from outside Europe will no longer be accepted on level 3 courses – equivalent to A-level and below...
A cross-party group of UK MPs has called for international students to be removed from migration targets, arguing it is damaging "a strong sector of our economy and also the cultural diversity of our universities". It joins growing calls for the government to change course from pressure groups, MPs and the British media.
London Metropolitan University has denied suggestions of widespread visa fraud after its licence to enrol non-EU students was suspended last week. UKBA concerns centre on how the university recorded data on overseas students regarding their ability to speak English and attendance.
From July 30, all student visa applicants from countries deemed "high risk" will be subject to an interview before being granted a visa in new efforts to crackdown on bogus students and providers. The system follows a pilot scheme which found hundreds of applications to lack credibility.
Prominent members of UK HE body UKCISA have called for a positive new vision for UK international education after a year dominated by student immigration concerns.
The PIE News will this week report from the largest gathering for UK university and college staff working with international students – the (UKCISA) Annual Conference, where visas will top the agenda.
UG applications to UK universities from outside the EU have risen 8.5% since this time last year, despite continuing fears that student visa policies are dampening demand for the UK. Meanwhile, applications from the UK and elsewhere within the EU have fallen 8.9% and 12.9% respectively; and Scotland has seen a boost in its appeal.
"The first move in the wrong direction since 2005" is how Tony Millns, chief executive of English UK, described a negative growth rate in student weeks charted by the ELT sector association for 2011. Speaking at the association's AGM, Millns explained that student weeks fell 5.3% across the 440 UK member schools, with the adult sector faring worst.
